


A Golden Dawn

by Elliekat



Series: Josephine Montilyet and the Women who Love Her [1]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Assassination Attempt(s), Awkward Crush, F/F, Flowers, Love Letters, Secret Relationship, Slow Build, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-30
Updated: 2018-11-29
Packaged: 2019-09-02 12:53:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16787341
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elliekat/pseuds/Elliekat
Summary: Two of the most unlikely people in the Inquisition somehow find their way to one another.





	A Golden Dawn

**Author's Note:**

> (sees there are only 13 fics in this relationship tag) My City Now
> 
> I haven't decided if I will put any sex in this fic yet but if I do I will change the rating and the sex itself will be in its own chapter.
> 
> Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoy!

Lace Harding gazed at the outline of Redcliffe Village, blurred by distance and the morning mist of the Hinterlands. She chewed her bread and enjoyed the moment of peace before the other scouts all woke up at once. Just one day ago, the elf woman named Charter had asked her to use her skills to serve the Inquisition. Of course she had gladly accepted; who could say no to an offer like that? And now she was further away from Redcliffe than she had ever been before. According to Charter, she could be sent to the farthest corners of Thedas on Inquisition work!

  
Her mother had shed more than a few tears when Lace came home shouting the news, but she and her father had both urged her to go with the Inquisition scouts and make herself useful. “There’s strange magic going on, what with that breach in the sky, and this Inquisition will surely need strong dwarves to help sort it out,” her father said, patting Lace on the head like he had done ever since she was a child. “And there ain’t a stronger dwarf in Redcliffe than our Lace Harding!” Lace had hugged them both tightly, and after promising to write home often, stepped out of the door of the home she had always known and into the next part of her life.

  
The newly recruited Scout Harding crunched on the last of her bread crust as the sun finally crested over the mountains in the east, its golden light filtering through the leaves that were just beginning to change color. The noise of the camp in the morning was steadily growing behind her as her fellow scouts opened their tents, talked to one another, and got out the supplies for their own breakfasts. Lace had tried to make a good impression by waking just before dawn, but only the last of the night watch had even seen her stumble sleepily out of her tent. She yawned, resolving to give herself those precious few extra minutes of sleep tomorrow.

  
One of the other scouts waved her over as she returned to camp. She hurried to the dark-skinned human woman’s side, desperately trying to remember her name. All the introductions had gone by so fast, and she had hardly any time to commit names to memory before Charter had sent her to the front of their group with the other Hinterlands natives. Lace put a wide smile on her face, hoping the issue of the scout’s name wouldn’t come up until she had a chance to figure it out for herself.

  
“Harding,” the scout said, her eyes friendly. “Settling in alright?”

  
“Yes, ma’am,” Lace said. “No different than when I was out tending Farmer McGuire’s sheep, although there are a lot more people and a lot less sheep, of course.”

  
The scout laughed. “No need for all that formal stuff here in the Inquisition scouts,” she said, waving her hand. “You can just call me Shaw. You might be new here, but you’re one of us now. And we’re all grateful for your help back in Redcliffe.”

  
“I just hope I can keep being helpful for the Inquisition,” Lace said, sighing with relief that the name issue had been resolved.

  
“Don’t worry about that,” Shaw said. “Sister Leliana- I don’t know if Charter told you, but she’s the boss- will know what to do with you. She doesn’t come out in the woods with us, but you’ll be meeting her soon enough once we get back to Haven. Anyways, I called you over because we just got word from the next camp that Lady Montilyet is coming through today.”

  
“A noblewoman?” Lace asked. She had never heard of anyone by that name in this part of Ferelden.

  
“She’s the Inquisition ambassador,” Shaw explained. “Meets with all the nobles to get them to let us scouts come through, or give us money, stuff like that. Sister Leliana brought her in; they’re old friends, so whatever she sees here at camp will definitely get back to the boss. She’s not stuck up or anything, but Sister Leliana might be… upset if the place is totally trashed when she sees it, you know?”

  
Lace nodded. Some of the scouts she had talked to on their march yesterday had told her a little bit about this Sister Leliana. The tone in which they talked about her was making Lace more afraid by the minute. “I’ll make sure she isn’t disappointed with the new recruits, ma—Shaw,” she said with a reassuring smile.

  
Shaw smiled back at her. “I knew you were a good choice, Harding. You’ll do great here.” She walked off briskly, presumably headed to clean up her part of the camp for Lady Montilyet’s arrival. Lace rushed back to her own tent to braid her hair properly, hoping that it would be acceptable enough for a fancy noblewoman.

  
The morning had just begun to warm up enough for Harding to consider shedding her woolen overcoat when the camp suddenly quieted. The soft sound of horse hooves on the packed dirt road was audible without the general noise of the other scouts, getting closer and closer until the entourage from Haven rode into the clearing.

  
It was immediately obvious which of the riders was Lady Montilyet. Standing out from the group of soldiers in battered armor and green-hooded scouts that presumably made up her guard was a woman who seemed to outshine the sun itself. Lace blinked, realizing that this was not some kind of romantic hallucination but rather the simple effect of the morning light on the woman’s golden clothes. She had never seen any garment so expensive-looking in her life, not even on the teyrn himself. A rather ostentatious necklace draped over the lady’s shoulders and glittered, catching Lace’s gaze. Her brown skin and intricately braided black hair also seemed to glow in the sunlight as she reined in her horse, coming to a stop in the middle of the camp and gracefully dismounting with the help of a guard. Lace did her best to stand up straight and look positive as Lady Montilyet looked around the camp.

  
Charter appeared by the lady’s side so fast it seemed like magic. “Lady Montilyet,” she said, “I trust your journey has been well so far.”

  
“Thank you, Officer Charter. It has been rather uneventful thus far, but that is a good thing. Leliana has chosen the best for my guard, as usual,” Lady Montilyet said, her musical tones striking a part of Lace’s heart that had laid dormant for years.  
Lace struggled for a moment to place the accent – was it Antivan? It was uncommon in Redcliffe, to say the least. The only place she had heard anything like it was at the docks, where merchants from far away occasionally came with expensive goods. But Lady Montilyet was clearly more noble than any Redcliffe fishmonger. Lace couldn’t help but watch her as she continued her conversation with Charter. Every movement was graceful and refined. She certainly never tried to surreptitiously scratch an itch or scuff her foot in the dirt, like the scouts and soldiers that were scattered around the clearing and desperately trying to hold their most attentive pose. She smiled at something Charter said, her full lips spreading into an expression of sincere warmth.

  
Oh no, Lace thought. She knew this feeling, although it had been quite some time since she had felt it. If she was completely honest with herself, she had been hoping for the opportunity to meet new people in the Inquisition. A few of the other scouts had already caught her eye, but the Lady Montilyet blew them all completely out of the water. She’s completely unattainable, Lace tried to reassure herself. You probably won’t ever see her again after today.

  
“—Our newest recruit from Redcliffe, Scout Harding.”

  
Lace barely kept herself from visibly jumping as Charter’s voice broke through her introspection. Lady Montilyet was looking at her expectantly. Her heart skipped a beat when she noticed the small mole next to the lady’s mouth. What was she supposed to do in front of Antivan nobles again?

  
Trying to project an air of confidence, as if she hadn’t been staring for the past five minutes, Lace dropped into her best curtsy. “It is an honor to be a part of the Inquisition, my lady,” she said. Maker, even her shoes seemed somehow untouched by the dust of the road.

  
“I look forward to seeing you again in Haven, Scout Harding. The Inquisition is truly thankful for your service in these trying times.” Lace looked up just in time to see Lady Montilyet smile at her before she and Charter turned away, walking towards another part of the camp.

  
“Maker preserve me,” Lace whispered under her breath. How was she supposed to survive her days off in Haven with a radiant woman like that around?


End file.
